There are many ways to position the face when posing and I do encourage models to look away from the camera or have one side of the face more exposed to the camera. This makes for a more interesting photograph; it can give the model a wistful or thoughtful appearance encouraging the viewer to wonder what the model is looking at or thinking about. It tells a story. It can also make the face appear slimmer if that is something you are concerned about and can showcase your “best side” ( see previous blog “How to choose your best side.”).

When facing away from the camera, unless you are going for a side profile picture, you should think about your nose. Your nose should not break the line of your cheek. This is difficult to explain in words so have a look at the two photographs below. They are pretty similar, however in the first photograph the pink line shows the outline of my face. You can see that my nose breaks the line of my cheek  (I've marked this in yellow just to labour the point) and my right eye merges into the background; you cannot see the outer edge of my eye.

In the second picture, this is corrected just by a slight movement of my face towards the camera. Now the outline of my cheek is intact and you can see the outer edge of my right eye. It's a subtle difference but makes for a better (more flattering) photograph.

This is a moment when you need to communicate with your photographer because it will be impossible for you to know whether your nose is breaking the line of your cheek but the all-seeing all-knowing photographer will be able to guide you ;).

For more guidance on posing your face, have a look at my pose like a pro with your face video.